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If I masturbate and am late with my period, will I burn in hell?

Answer

Thank you for your honest and personal question about masturbation. We aim to answer questions with reference to the Bible. I want to say right at the beginning that there is no reason why you should, as you have put it, 'burn in hell'. God wants no one to be apart from him and he has made a way for you to know his love.

Firstly with regard to sex we believe that God has created sex and sexual experience to be within the covenant of marriage, and all sexual activity outside of this commitment undermines the sacred nature of marriage. Masturbation, although not necessarily a sin in its own right, does lead us to lust, which is a sin. It is therefore important to remove lust and other sinful activities from our minds, that we may pursue holiness.

God created us with a capacity not only to be sexual but to enjoy it. His command to Adam and Eve, to 'go forth and multiply,' (Genesis 1:22) indicates that within marriage God approves of sexual relations, and therefore of sexual pleasure as well, provided a practice does not involve a third party, is not physically or mentally abusive, and both partners are comfortable with it.

If this is true, so is this: all sexual activity outside marriage is abnormal to the extent that it breaks the essential connection between marriage, sexual relations and sexual enjoyment. Clearly sexual intercourse other than with a spouse betrays the marriage, and even before a marriage it is wrong because the partners are treating too lightly the sacred nature of marriage. This would also be true of two such people giving sexual stimulation to each other. However, self-stimulation does not obviously constitute such a betrayal. It is significant that, although the Bible speaks openly about sexual sins, no mention is made of self-masturbation.

The physical release of sexual tension is not in itself a sin and may be a way of avoiding sin. However, the combination of lust with masturbation is a sin. Jesus makes it clear: "I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matthew 5:27-28). Jesus then goes on to use figurative language, saying that it is better to pluck out your eye than for the eye to cause sin and it is also better to cut off the hand than for the hand to cause sin (Matthew 5:29-30). This does suggest that Jesus is condemning using self-masturbation to satisfy lustful thoughts, but not condoning it either.

As I understand it, masturbation does not normally interfere with periods and a late period may indicate a medical issue; we would encourage you to speak to a medical professional. If you have had sexual relations with a man, however, it may be possible that you are pregnant. Again we would like to encourage you to seek medical help as soon as possible.

With lustful masturbation and any type of sex outside of marriage it is regarded as a sinful act. However there is no reason why anyone would need to ‘burn in hell’ for these things. We believe that the God who created us wants to forgive us for all of the wrong things we have done. For this purpose God sent Jesus to die for all of the bad we have done. On the cross we believe that Jesus died for all of the wrong we have done and so we will not have to face the consequences of it if we put our trust in Jesus.

Ask for God to help you live a life pleasing to him. Ask Jesus to forgive you for any wrong that you have done, be it sexual or anything else that you feel guilty about or that the Bible calls sin. You can watch a video about what Jesus has done for you on our main website.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16)

Here are some more Bible Verses for your further consideration:

Matthew 5:27-28

John 3:16-20

Philippians 4:8

I hope this answer helps you to find peace with God through Jesus Christ. If you want to know more about what Jesus has done for you please watch the video on the main part of our site: Watch the video

I encourage you to attend a local Bible believing church and speak to the leader about your question. If you want to find a local church, our Church Finder may help you: Find a Church

Please feel free to submit a question to us or to read our answer database: Ask a Question

*All Scripture references are taken From The English Standard Version of the Holy Bible unless stated otherwise

*If anything in this answer affects you directly, then please feel free to call our confidential prayer line in the UK on 0845 4567729, where trained Christian volunteers will take your call and pray both for you and with you. If you are outside of the UK then you may submit your request for prayer on line at www.ucb.co.uk/prayerline